Rotary ductor spider



H. W. FAEBER ROTARY DUCTOR SPIDER Dec. 9, 1958 2 shees-sheet 1` Filed Jan. l0, 1955 Dec. 9, 1958 H. w. FAEBER ROTARY DucToR SPIDER 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. l0, 1955 INVENTOR. HARRY W. FAEBER EXES.

noranr micron SPIDER Harry W. Farther, Larchmont, N. Y., assigner to Time, incorporated, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application .l'anuary 1d, 1955, Serial No. 480,725

Claims. (Cl. fill-348) This invention relates to printing presses and, more particularly, to a rotary ductor mechanism of a printing press for transferring ink or other liquid from one surface to another in such fashion as to insure a uniform film on the surface receiving the ink or other liquid.

Various forms of rotary ductor mechanisms have been heretofore proposed for the inking and liquid supplying apparatus of printing presses. One form heretofore proposed is the spider-type mechanism described in my U. S. Letters 'Patent No. 2,583,639 wherein a plurality of ductor rolls are mounted between rotatable end supports which translate the rolls in a circular path, each of the rolls receiving ink or other liquid from the peripheral surface of one roll and transferring it to the peripheral surface of another roll as it travels in its orbit.

The present invention relates to an improved rotary ductor mechanism of this general organization, but wherein each of the ductor rolls, in addition to being translated in a circular orbit, is rotated about its own aXis. this Way a greater amount of the surface of each of the ductor rolls is brought into direct contact with the surfaces from which and to which the ink or other liquid is received and transferred. ln addition, the present arrangement makes possible a more uniform distribution of the ink or other liquid on the ductor rolls, as well as a more uniform distribution of the ink or other liquid upon the surface of the roll to which the ink or other liquid is transferred by the ductor rolls.

ln the present invention, the ductor rolls are adapted to be supported at least at one end in a rotatable supporting housing. The ductor rolls are evenly spaced in circular array with respect to said rotatable supporting housing, and even though the ductor rolls are driven to rotate about their own axes, they are resilently supported by saidend housing, permitting them to yield as they engage the peripheral surfaces of the rolls with which they are operatively associated. This resilient yielding effect of the ductor rolls causes them to follow a portion of the surfaces with which they come into contact.

The said rotatable housing supporting the ductor rolls contains, internally mounted therein, the means for supporting the ductor rolls yieldingly, as well as the drive transmission'for rotating the ductor rolls about their own These operating parts and the arrangement whereby they are compactly enclosed within the housing constitute important features of the present invention. Another feature of the invention is the manner in which the housing is effectively sealed to keep oil in and dust and dirt out.

The details of the present invention will be fully understood by reference to the description which follows and to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure l is a view, partially in cross-section and partially broken away, of the ductor roll mechanism of the present invention; the parts shown in cross-section are those which would be viewed along the line 1.-1 of Figure 3, looking in the direction of the arrows;

' arent 2,863,389 Patented Dec. 9, 1958 Figure 2 is a cross-section view taken along the line 2 2 of Figure 1, looking in the direction of the arrows; and

Figure 3, is a cross-section view taken along the line 3-3 of Figure 1, looking in the direction of `the arrows.

Referring to Figures 1 and 2, three ductor rolls 10 are supported between rotatable end housings 11 (only one of which is shown in Figure 1). The ductor rolls are evenly spaced apart, and although the `axes of the ductor rolls are movably mounted, in a manner to be described, the axes in normal position are equidistant from the aXis of rotation of the housing 11.

The rotation of the end housings 11 causes the ductor rolls 1t) to be `translated in a circular path, in the course of which they engage the peripheral surface of a fountain roll 12, indicated in phantom lines in Figure 3, to receive ink or other liquid from the surface thereof, and the peripheral surface of a distributor roll 13, also indicated in phantom lines in Figure 3, to transfer the ink or other liquid thereto. It Shoud be understood that this arrangement of ductor rolls is applicable to the inking mechanism or to the liquid system of a printing press, and for a. complete understanding of a typical system in which this spider-type arrangement of ductor rolls may be utilized, reference may be had to the above-identified patent wherein the system is explained in detail.

Turning now to a description of the present ductor roll mechanism, the ductor roll supporting housing 11'is provided with a long tubular hub 14, and the extreme end `of the hub carries a drive gear 15 which is attached to an annular tongue 14a of the hub by means of bolts 15a. The gear 15 is driven by means of a drive transmission (not shown) and rotation is thereby imparted to the housing 11 to translate the axes of the ductor blades 10 in circular paths into contact with the peripheries of the rolls 12 and 13. The housing supporting the opposite ends of the ductor rolls need not, ofcourse, be connected to the drive transmission.

The housing 11 is supported within a bearing sleeve 17 and` the tubular shaft 14 is rotatably supported therein by means of ball bearings 16. The sleeve 17 is provided with an oil hole 18 to permit the lubrication of the ball bearings therein.

The ends ofthe ductor rolls lll are supported in sockets 25 by meansrof pivoted socket caps 26 which may be suitably clamped in position, and the sockets 25 are provided with shafts 28 which extend through a suitably large slot or opening 29 in a cover plate 22 which is attached to the open end of the housing 11 by bolts 23. The shafts 28, which actually form end extensions of the ductor rolls, are rotatably mounted by ball bearings 24 to pivoted arms 20 and the arms 20 are disposed within the interior of the housing 11 and pivotally mounted on studs 21. The studs 21 extend between the cover plate 22 and the opposite vertical portion of the wall of the housing 11. Referring to Figure 3, it will be noted that the stud shafts 21 and the disposition of the pivoted arms 20 thereon are symmetrically arranged within the housing 11.

Thus, referring to Figure 3, it will be seen that each endof the ductor rolls 10 is supported by an arm 20 pivotally mounted about a stud 21. The arms 20 are normally urged by compression springs 30 against set screws 31 which serve as stops therefor. TheV compression springs 30 are carried upon pins 35, the heads 35a of which are pivotally mounted at 36 to the eXtreme ends of the arms 20, and the opposite ends of the pins 35 engage slots formed in the housing 11. Adjustable screw heads 37 seal off the ends of the pin receiving slots in the housing, and the compression springs 30 act between the screw heads 37 and the heads 35a of the pins to maintain the arms 20 engaged with the stop screws 3f. The screw heads 37 are accessible from the exterior of the housing 1l so that the compressive forces of the springs 30 may be readily'l adjusted. The stop screwsl are alsoV accessiblewfrom the exterior of the housing, to facilitate the adjustment of the normal position of the ductor rolls. Y

When the stop screwsl are properly adjusted the circumferences--l of the ductor rolls 10 will coincide with the outer peripheries of the `circular end housings lll.

As lshown rin Figure 2, as the end housings lll are rotated'theductor rolls 10 `will be carried in circular paths to engage the peripheral surfaces of the rolls 12 and 13.

It is noted that the surfaces of the rolls 12 and i3 fall within the outercircumference of the housings ill, and the ductor rolls will yield slightlyV against the compressive forces of the springs 30 when they engage the surfaces of the rolls l2 and 13. Rolls 12 and 13 are shown 120 degrees apart with respect to the center'of housing 11 for the purpose of showing clearly the contact relationship between these rolls and the ducto-r rolls. However, it is to be preferred to locaterolls 12 and i3 at an angular distance other than 120 degrees in order to avoid simultaneous contact on rolls l2 and'llS, because such simultaneouscontact"doubles the load onthe support and drive mechanisms ofthe ductor roll system,

rl`he ductor rolls llt) are also rotated about their own axes `by a gear transmission, so that when the ductor rolls engage they surfaces of the rolls l2 and13, there will be a greater area of contact between the ductor rolls and the surfaces of the rolls f2 and f3; For this purpose, a gear 4d, which has a splined bore, is attached by means of screw 4l to the splined end of each of the stub shafts 2S, coaxially therewith, and the gear 40 meshes with a companion gear 42 freely mounted by ball bearings 42a upon the shaft 2l from which the arm Zd'is pivoted.

As best shown in Figure 3, the gear 42 also meshes with a gear 43 disposed coaxially withinthe rotatable housing lil, and the gear 43 is mounted on the extreme end of a rotatable shaft 44 by means of splines 43a. Shaft 44 extends through the hollow, shaft ll4; The shaft 44 is rotatably supported internally of the shaft 14 by means of ball bearings 45 and 45a at opposite ends of the shaft l4. The opposite end of the shaft 44 carries a pinion 49 by means of which the shaft 44 is rotated. Thus, by means of. the drive arrangement above-explained, each of the ductor rolls ll@ is individually rotated about its own axis as it is being translated in a circular path by the rotatable housing lll.

Referring to Figure 3, it is noted that the drive transmission for each of the ductor rolls l@ is symmetrically arranged in theV housing ll., and all three of the ductor rolls 1S) are driven from the gear 43 mounted at the end of the shaft 44, which gear 43 meshes with three symmetrically arranged gears d2 rotatably mounted on each of the three stub shafts 2l. lt may also be noted that the driving gearsY 43, 42 and 44B for the doctor rolls will remain in correct mesh even though one of the ductor Vrolls willl remain in correct mesh even though one of the ductor rolls is translated from the outer position, determined by the engagement of the top screw 3l with the arm 20, to the retracted position when the' ductor roll is in operative Vengagement with the roll'llZ or ll. l

Although, Vas mentioned above, there isV a similar spider housing ll4 for supporting the opposite ends of the ductor rolls, it is unnecessary `that the other housingy be provided with the gear train arrangement for rotatingtheductor rolls, and due to the absence of this gear train the width of the housing can also be reduced and the rshaft extension of the spider corresponding to the hollow/shaft l4can be solid.

rlhe ductor rolls arefreeto move from innermost to an outermost position, eveny thoughpthe rotatable sockets 25 whichk support the ductor rolls pass through the openings 29 in the housing cover 22. It is, however, important that the housing 1l be sealed to maintain the interior thereof oil tight and relatively dust free, and to maintain an oil-tight enclosure within the housing 1l annular seals 53 (see Figure l)l are provided at the end of the openings formed in the arms 20 which receive the shafts 2S and the ball bearings 3). Also, the out-` side faces of the arms 20 and the inside face of the cover 22 around each of the openings 29 are provided with grooves to accommodate the annular sealing rings 53. The annular sealing rings 53 are further protected by the dirt shield rings 5) which engage annular grooves 5l formed in the sockets 25. The grooves 5l are, of course, made deeper than the sealing rings 5h to permit the movement of the ductor rolls from the outermost vto the innermost position while still maintaining an effective seal. The other end of the housing structure is sealed by use of the sealed bearing 45a.

An important feature of the oil-tight spider housing 11 is the fact that the seals 53 seat in the annular grooves cut in the faces of the arms 2d, and they are urged outwardly into sealing position against the groove cut in the cover plate Z2 by a plurality of small springs 61 accommodated in small holes 62 formed in the arms` Ztl.

One of the advantages of the present design is that it can be readily assembled or disassembled. To disassemble the mechanism, the gear 15 may be first removed and the nut 17a threaded to the end of the sleeve 17 backed on. The ductor rolls may be readily removed by opening the socket caps 2o. With the ductor rolls removed, the sleeve 17 and the housing lll with its contents intact can be withdrawn out of the frame bore toward the inside of the press. The entire spider unit can thus be removed without being disassembled.

The invention has been shown in a single preferred form by way of example only, and obviously many modifications and variations may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention. It is to be understood, therefore, that the invention is not to be limited to any'specied ferm or embodiment, except insofar as such limitations as set forth in the claims.

I claim:

l. In an inking mechanism for a printing press in which ink is transferred from one surface to another byV an ink roll which is translated in an orbital path and at the same time rotated 'about its axis, a rotatable housing adjacent one endof said ink roll, means movably mounted within the housing for supporting the ink roll at one end, permitting movement of the ink roll toward and away from the axis of rotation of the housing, a stop determining the maximum position of the ink roll away from the axis of rotation of the housing, spring means for normally urging the ink roll in a direction away fromthe axis of rotation of the support but yielding when the ink roll comes into engagement with one of said surfaces, a gear transmission system within the housing for rotating the ink roll about its own axis, an enlarged opening in the housing for the connection between the end of the ink roll and the means movably mounted within the hous- `ing for the support of the ink roll, said enlarged opening permitting limited movement of the ink roll toward and away from the axis of rotation of the housing, means for maintaining the enlarged opening in .the housing sealed, said'means including a sealing ring'carried by said movable support means, said sealing ring being coaxial with the axis of rotation of the ink roll, and spring means for urging the sealing ring in sealing engagement with the portion of the housing surrounding said enlarged open- 2. An inking mechanism as set forth in claim l inv which the movable means for supportingthe end of the ink roll is formed with an annular groove therein coaxial with the axis of rotation of the ink roll, the sealing ring being set within the groove and capable of axial movement therein.

3. An inking mechanism as set forth in claim 1 in which the movable means for supporting the end of the ink roll comprises a pivotal member mounted within the housing and in which the gear transmission system for rotating the ink roll about its own axis comprises a first gear disposed coaxially with the ink roll, a second gear disposed coaxially with the pivot of the pivotal member and meshing with the rst gear, and a rotatable drive gear coaxial with the axis of rotation of the housing.

4. An inking mechanism as set forth in claim 3 ini cluding a driven hollow hub connected to the rotatable housing and a rotatable shaft coupled with the drive gear mounted coaxially with the axis of rotation of the housing, the driven end of said shaft extending beyond the hollow hub.

5. In a ductor mechanism for transferring a substance from the surface of one roll to the surface of another roll, the combination of a plurality of ductor rolls, a rotatable end support for said plurality of ductor rolls, said ductor rolls being arranged compactly about the axis of rotation of said end support and being translated around the said axis by the rotation of the end support, pivotal members mounted to the end support for supporting the ends of the ductor rolls for movement toward and away from the axis of rotation of the end support, stops determining the maximum positions of the ductor rolls from the axis of rotation of the end support, spring means for normally maintaining said ductor rolls in the positions determined by said stops, but permitting the ductor roll to yield in a direction toward the axis of rotation of the end support upon engagement with the surfaces of said rolls during the translation thereof by the end support in a path around said axis of rotation, means for imparting rotation to the end support, and means for imparting rotation to each of the ductor rolls about their own axes, said means comprising a drive shaft coaxial with the axis of rotation of the end support, a drive gear mounted on said. drive shaft, a gear disposed coaxially with each of said ductor rolls for imparting rotation to said corresponding ductor roll, separate gear means for transmitting the drive from the drive gear to each of said gears disposed coaxially with said ductor rolls, and a shaft for supporting each of said separate gear means, said shafts being supported by said rotatable end support in a circular array about the axis of rotation of said end support, the axis of each of said separate gear means being intermedaite radii passing through the axes of rotation of adjacent ductor rolls and the axis of rotation of said end support, said axis of rotation of each of said separate gear means being coincident with the axis of rotation of the pivotal member which supports the ductor roll driven by said particular gear means, whereby said ductor rolls are arranged compactly and movement of the ductor rolls toward and away from the axis of rotation of the end support is possible without disconnecting the drive transmitted to the ductor rolls.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 701,119 Wood May 27, 1902 752,285 Davis Feb. 16, 1904 1,717,737 Schlesinger June 18, 1929 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 2,863,389 December 9, 1958 Harry W, Faeber It is hereby certified that error appears in the printed specification of the above numbered patent requiring correction and .that the said Letters Patent should read as corrected belown Column 3, line 58, for l'doctor" read m ductor linee 60 and 6l, strike out the second occurrence of' "will remain n correct mesh even though one of the ductor rollsf'; line 62, for "top'l read m Stop w.

Signed and sealed this 17th day of March 1959.

( SEAL) Attest:

KARL H AXLINE ROBERT c. wATsoN ttesting Officer Conmissioner of Patents 

